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Since a young age, sophomore tennis player Chase Bartlett has had an interest in playing tennis, where he has also been able to develop strong leadership qualities. In fact, Bartlett’s notable leadership was showcased this past November when he was chosen to represent St. Edward’s University at the NCAA Student-Athlete Leadership Forum in Washington D.C.

“I learned a lot. It was a really great weekend and I was so glad that I had the chance to represent St. Ed’s there,” Bartlett said.

One of the highlights that Bartlett particularly pointed out was learning how crucial it is for great leaders to distinguish what their team member’s individual strengths are. Some of the biggest takeaways that Bartlet identifies are “why we do the things we do” and how answering that can help with the search for “what really drives you” to reach certain goals.

This past week, Bartlett earned the first national ranking of his career by ranking 36th among NCAA Division II singles players. While he is quite proud of his personal accomplishment, Bartlett says it “won’t really change anything for me as far as what I do everyday or how I think of myself.”

Instead, Bartlett says that because the fall season is so important to the team’s success moving forward, he would rather turn his focus on increasing his craft and skillset.

“Right now, I’m working on my serve a lot and trying to develop more weapons while also working on net clearance and depth,” Bartlett said. Additionally, he says that he will use the rest of his time wisely by “getting physical work in so we can become stronger and faster because when we start playing in spring, it’s … more of a breaking-down process towards the end because we’re playing so much. Really, what we do in the summer and fall dictates how we do.”

When asked about any competitive obstacles that the team may have to eventually face, Bartlett was quick to note that St. Mary’s University tennis team is definitely a matchup that they are looking forward to.

Since his first year as a college athlete at St. Edward’s, Bartlett has faced many opponents, but says that the rivalry he has developed with St. Mary’s is certainly something that helps push him.

“Competition is definitely a big motivator as well as having intrinsic motivation [for] being the best I could be,” Bartlett said.

He also understands that through performing at the best of his ability, he can have a strong influence on how his team executes against their competition.

But as far as goals in mind for the spring?

“I’m really looking forward to this coming season, I think we have a great shot at doing some great things while accomplishing team goals. Hopefully, I’ll get the chance to improve my own ranking and have a good season.”